Lin is the better playmaker, so Lin should start. However against the top PGs like Westbrook, Rose, and Parker I wouldn't mind Bev starting.
I vote Bev. Not because I think he's better than Lin - I don't. But Bev meshes well with our starters, especially if Dwight/Asik are starting. Lin, on the other hand, would be a fantastic 6th man and the leader of the 2nd team. He can provide the same services that Harden does when Harden is sitting, lead the offense and set the pace. He could even still get more minutes than Bev. Hell, I think his numbers would even go up, as he'd probably end up having more time with the ball in his hands that way, and he is most effective when he has the ball in his hands. I like this particular problem, though. We're GTG either way.
Just to clarify... Lin is a guy who will give 8-12/6 or so reliably, with the occasional dud. But occasionally he will go off for 18-20 (actually not too rare), and on those rare occasions when no one else is producing he will give that 30 or so pt performance. He's too inconsistent to lead the starters, but he's perfect off the bench. Bev, on the other hand, will likely not give you any 30 pt performances. He will occasionally give you an 18-20 pt performance, but that's not the norm, and it's not his forte. His game isn't reflected well in the stats. He gives constant on-ball defense instead. His impact is best felt when surrounded by other people who can take up the offensive slack. He's not a floor general, he's not a 3pt specialist, he's a gritty defensive-minded guard who complements Harden particularly well. When we have Harden, Parsons, Howard, and Asik (or other 4, fill in the blank here) on the floor we don't need offense from the 1. Bev's defense is more useful. When we are playing the 2nd unit, though, considering that Asik's generally going to be at 5 during those times, Lin's offense would be VERY welcome. I'd like to see Brewer thrown out there to add a defensive presence, too. That is a kicka$$, balanced 2nd team - led by Lin's offensive presence. And he's the guy who gets the ball first in that scheme. I bet lots of $$ his numbers go up in that set. It's fit, what's best for the team, and what's best for the players. It works out. IMHO, of course.
to keep the trade value of a 8m contract and the cap room flexibility, you got to start Lin so you can unload it easier when it expire next year. if you wanna down value him and re-sign him for cheap 2 years later you knock off his stat next year, not this year. on the other hand PB's contract is only 800k, if you wanna keep him for cheap, you dont start him, other wise when the contract expire he would ask for starter money or you would risk losing him, then you got a headache of 8m+5m in PG position, or you gotta look for another PG again. Sure Harden+Dwright would be good enough but old Rox fans should remember the PG headache in Yao-Tmac era, you better keep stability on PG position or the bad old time would hit the team again, over burden your stars they will get injured for sure, this is rule of nature no one can dodge, unless this is an organization treat players like disposal, take in make money then dump it, oh well... no wonder past few year no stars would come to rocket for the bad name they made by severely injured 2 ALL stars. Let's wait and see.
You can't have both way man lol. That's the problem right there. The reason Lin is not going to be starting is because of his defense. He's still a weak defender at the end of the day. We're not talking about how great an offensive player he ...we know he's good at pushing the ball and being a great at attacking and passing and helping the team out...we're not doubting that. But DEFENSE is the problem...and he still getting pick on in pick n roll and he's still slow at defense...at anticipating the move. Rockets can't afford to trade basket w/ the other team if they want to win easy games. A lot of teams in this league have great PGs that are just going to attack and exploit Lin because there is no one else to attack in the starting lineups. They can't attack Howard and Asik because they're dominating inside. They can't do much against Parson's solid defense either. So if you put Lin there, you're creating an option for them to attack. But if you put Beverly there, they can't do much or won't be as effective attacking Beverly. This is the reason Beverly is starting. It just make sense especially for the team 2nd unit as well....they need Lin's offensive prowess to help generate offense for the 2nd unit. Beverly won't be able to do that.
I guess a case can also be made to start the game with a strong defensive to throw the opposing pg off his game. In that case, Bev works better. No matter what though, I don't want Bev to worry about fouls or fatigue and just to play his game. We are actually deep (if not astronomically talented) at pg. I know I may get flamed from both sides on this - but I don't see much drop off whoever is manning the point. Rather have Bev play like a tornado and foul out jn 25 minutes than see him get tentative. I doubt that will happen thougb.
Lin has proved his doubters wrong so many times. This summer he had his going left, left hand finish and three point shooting fixed. Are we going to see him overcoming his weakness as a defender and become great at it? Is he going to come out of this slight stronger? It'd be interesting to see.
I didn't get a sense that coach is talking about 6th man. He hasn't promised who to start and he hasn't promised minutes. I am not saying that these things have to be set in stone, but if he has laid out his logistics if any, there may not be as much resistance. Fans can assume a lot of things, but it may or may not be what is going on. Has he really not made up his mind, or maybe he is not thinking like you? which I am not sure, and I think that is how people get upset.
Well, he did say something like, "what's the difference between starting and playing 27 minutes and off the bench and playing 26 minutes?"
this is never about who "deserves" to start, and who's a better PG, and lin vs. bev, etc. it's always been about what mchales wants and that's it. and he wants bev to start. this preseason, in addition to finding a pf, has been about giving bev a chance to see if he can be a starter in this league. and yes, he can be a starter on this team, mainly with his defense. lin finished his first full year as a 82 game starter at a solid 13 and 6, while improving throughout the year. when bev started in the post season, he was 10 and 4 against mainly reggie jackson who actually did quite well against bev. in the preseason so far, lin and bev have similar numbers. bev will be the starting pg when the season starts, but based on numbers, he didn't "beat out" lin for the job, and lin didn't stink up preseason to lose the job. normally when you have a solid pg as the incumbent, you don't lose your job to a backup that performed just as well as you did in the preseason. that doesn't make any sense. the only time you lose your starting pg job is when the coach takes it away from you, and let's be frank, that's pretty much what mchale is doing. now, he's obviously doing it because he thinks a pg like bev is what he wants in his starting pg, and i'll need to take his word for it since he's the coach and sees these guys in practice everyday. his pg back on the celtics days was dennis johnson and if you were a fan back in those days, you'll see more DJ in bev then in lin, and that's probably what he likes in his pg.
Start Lin AND Beverley Play Harden at the 3 Parsons at the 4 Not really, just throwing sh** out there to see if it sticks.
Wow, can't believe people don't believe McHale when he says something, considering how he's the coach and he makes the decisions. McHale said: "I have TWO starting point guards". Also he said that even into November and December he will "experiment" with different lineups. Carl Herrara made a post recently which shared his opinion that Lin and Casspi work well together while Bev works well inside the Twin Towers lineup. Now honestly, do you think Asik will start at PF every single game? Probably not. Also McHale said that "Casspi may start some at PF"; and also DMo could start. In those we games may see Lin start at the point; while with the Twin Towers we'll likely see Beverley.
Jones, Asik at starting PF = Bev starts DMO, Casspi at starting PF = Lin starts So far in preseason this has been the pattern; also in scrimmages these were the pairings.
Scott Machado is the answer. Absolute stud. Playmaker extraordinaire. Low cap hit. Plays well off the ball, gritty defender.
Absolutely. Mchale made a decision long ago that beverley was going to start this season. He's only rolled out the "we've got two starting PG's" line and the notion of alternating starts in order to lessen the shock of lin being replaced by beverley. He has never honestly considered lin to be his starting PG. He knew it would be beverley all along.
